Football in England
Season1962–63
Men's football
First DivisionEverton
Second DivisionStoke City
Third DivisionNorthampton Town
Fourth DivisionBrentford
FA CupManchester United
League CupBirmingham City
Charity ShieldTottenham Hotspur
England

The 1962–63 season was the 83rd season of competitive football in England.

Overview

Everton won the League Championship, their first post-war title. Manchester United won the FA Cup, their first major trophy since the Munich Air Disaster in 1958. Birmingham City won the League Cup. Tottenham Hotspur won the European Cup Winners' Cup, thereby becoming the first English side to win a European cup competition. Oxford United were elected to the Football League to replace the defunct Accrington Stanley, who had resigned from the league the previous season. Much of the season was postponed for several months because of the Big Freeze of 1963.

Diary of the season

3 October 1962: The England national football team competes in the European Football Championships for the first time, beginning the qualifiers for the 1964 European Nations' Cup with a 1–1 draw against France in the qualifying round first leg at Hillsborough. Ron Flowers of Wolverhampton Wanderers scores England's only goal.

25 October 1962: Alf Ramsey, the Ipswich Town manager, accepts The Football Association's offer to succeed Walter Winterbottom as England manager with effect from 1 May 1963, after agreeing taking charge of two earlier matches from 27 February 1963.

5 January 1963: The Big Freeze of 1963 impacts the third round of the FA Cup with only 3 of 32 fixtures played.[1]

12 January 1963: Only eight League fixtures are played due to the bad weather.[1]

23 January 1963: The Pools Panel is used to forecast the results of postponed matches for the first time.[1]

26 January 1963: Only one fixture of the fourth round of the FA Cup is played as most of the third round ties have not been completed.

28 January 1963: FA Cup fifth round draw is postponed for a week.

2 February 1963: Only five League fixtures are played due to the bad weather.[2]

4 February 1963: The FA postpone the fifth and sixth rounds of the FA Cup for a week.

9 February 1963: Only seven League fixtures are played due to the bad weather.[2]

12 February 1963: The FA postpone the fifth and sixth rounds of the FA Cup further.

18 February 1963: The FA Cup semi-finals are postponed four weeks and the final three weeks.

27 February 1963: England are knocked out of the European Nations' Cup with a 5–2 defeat to France in Paris in the second leg of the qualifying round.[3]

7 March 1963: Bradford City finally play their third round FA Cup tie against Newcastle United, losing 6–1.

11 March 1963: Middlesbrough beat Blackburn Rovers 3–1 to become the last team into the fourth round of the FA Cup.

16 March 1963: The fifth round of the FA Cup is finally played.

4 May 1963: English Double-chasing Leicester City are beaten by West Bromwich Albion in the top-flight, while Leyton Orient's defeat at Hillsborough Stadium leaves the East Londoners "practically doomed to relegation". In the Second Division, table-topping Stoke City were beaten by Scunthorpe United, and a hat-trick from Irishman Johnny Crossan features in Sunderland's 4–0 home victory over Southampton. Leaders of the Fourth Division Brentford rack up their 26th league win of the season against Chesterfield, and move two points clear of Oldham Athletic, in second, with two games in hand.[4] Outside of the League, Wimbledon win the FA Amateur Cup with victory over Sutton United in the Final.[5]

11 May 1963: Everton seal the First Division title with a 4–1 home win over Fulham on the final day of the league season.

15 May 1963: Tottenham Hotspur become the first British club to win a European trophy, defeating Atlético Madrid 5–1 in the European Cup Winners' Cup Final in Rotterdam. Jimmy Greaves and Terry Dyson score twice each, with the other goal coming from John White.

18 May 1963: Stoke secure the Second Division Championship with a win over Luton Town, while Sunderland in second leave the door open for third-placed Chelsea by losing at home to the West Londoners. This result completes Sunderland's league programme, while Chelsea have one match remaining.[6]

21 May 1963: Chelsea put seven past Portsmouth without reply and pip Sunderland to the remaining Second Division promotion place. The Third Division relegation decider between Walsall and Charlton Athletic is abandoned with the score 0–0 after the pitch was rendered unplayable by a thunderstorm.[7]

23 May 1963: Birmingham City take a big step to winning the first major trophy of their history by defeating Aston Villa 3–1 at St Andrew's in the Football League Cup final first leg.

24 May 1963: England draw with the Football League XI at Arsenal Stadium. Jimmy Greaves, Alan Hinton and Johnny Byrne score for the Three Lions, while Roger Hunt, Geoff Hurst and Tony Kay score for the League.[8][9] Elsewhere, Charlton preserve their Third Division status, relegating opponents Walsall in the process.[10]

25 May 1963: Manchester United win their first major trophy for six years and their first FA Cup for 15 years with a 3–1 win over Leicester City in the final at Wembley Stadium. David Herd scores twice for United and Denis Law scores the other goal. Ken Keyworth scores the consolation goal for Leicester City, who have yet to win the final after three attempts.

27 May 1963: A goalless draw in the Football League Cup final second leg at Villa Park gives the trophy to Birmingham City.

31 May 1963: West Ham United, England's representative in the International Soccer League of 1963, begin their campaign by drawing 3–3 with Scottish club Kilmarnock in New York.[11]

Awards

Football Writers' Association

Top goalscorer

Honours

CompetitionWinnerRunner-up
First DivisionEverton (6)Tottenham Hotspur
Second DivisionStoke CityChelsea
Third DivisionNorthampton TownSwindon Town
Fourth DivisionBrentfordOldham Athletic
FA CupManchester United (3)Leicester City
League CupBirmingham City (1)Aston Villa
Charity ShieldTottenham HotspurIpswich Town
Home Championship Scotland England

Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour. * indicates new record for competition

Football League

First Division

In a First Division season with heavy fixture congestion brought about by a severe winter, Everton emerged as league champions – their first piece of postwar silverware. Tottenham Hotspur continued their brilliant start to the 1960s, finishing runners-up in the First Division and going on to lift the European Cup Winners' Cup to become English football's first winners of a European trophy. Burnley, the 1960 league champions, finished third. Leicester City, still yet to win a major trophy, emerge as surprise double challengers but eventually had to settle for a fourth-place finish in the league, and lost to Manchester United in the FA Cup final – with Matt Busby's rebuilding scheme paying off with the success being United's first trophy since the Munich air disaster five years earlier.

Liverpool's return to the First Division saw them secure a decent eighth-place finish and their players adapt well to what for many of them was their first season playing in the First Division.

Birmingham City's consolation for narrowly avoiding relegation came in the shape of glory in the Football League Cup, the first major trophy of their 88-year history.

Leyton Orient's first season in the top flight was a dismal one, and they ended it with relegation and being 12 points adrift of safety. They were joined in relegation by Manchester City, who finally went down after several seasons of gradually falling out of contention for honours.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Everton 42 25 11 6 84 42 2.000 61 Qualified for the European Cup
2 Tottenham Hotspur 42 23 9 10 111 62 1.790 55 Qualified for the Cup Winners' Cup[lower-alpha 1]
3 Burnley 42 22 10 10 78 57 1.368 54
4 Leicester City 42 20 12 10 79 53 1.491 52
5 Wolverhampton Wanderers 42 20 10 12 93 65 1.431 50
6 Sheffield Wednesday 42 19 10 13 77 63 1.222 48
7 Arsenal 42 18 10 14 86 77 1.117 46
8 Liverpool 42 17 10 15 71 59 1.203 44
9 Nottingham Forest 42 17 10 15 67 69 0.971 44
10 Sheffield United 42 16 12 14 58 60 0.967 44
11 Blackburn Rovers 42 15 12 15 79 71 1.113 42
12 West Ham United 42 14 12 16 73 69 1.058 40
13 Blackpool 42 13 14 15 58 64 0.906 40
14 West Bromwich Albion 42 16 7 19 71 79 0.899 39
15 Aston Villa 42 15 8 19 62 68 0.912 38
16 Fulham 42 14 10 18 50 71 0.704 38
17 Ipswich Town 42 12 11 19 59 78 0.756 35
18 Bolton Wanderers 42 15 5 22 55 75 0.733 35
19 Manchester United 42 12 10 20 67 81 0.827 34 Qualified for the Cup Winners' Cup[lower-alpha 1]
20 Birmingham City 42 10 13 19 63 90 0.700 33
21 Manchester City 42 10 11 21 58 102 0.569 31 Relegated to the Second Division
22 Leyton Orient 42 6 9 27 37 81 0.457 21
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
Notes:
  1. 1 2 Tottenham Hotspur won the 1963 European Cup Winners' Cup, so qualified for the tournament in 1963-64 as reigning champions. Manchester United won the 1963 FA Cup, so qualified for the 1963-64 European Cup Winners' Cup in the regular fashion as FA Cup holders.

Second Division

Tony Waddington's impressive Stoke City side, which included 48-year-old FWA Footballer of the Year Stanley Matthews, former Manchester United forward Dennis Viollet and former Burnley star Jimmy McIlroy clinched the Second Division title and with it a place in the First Division. Chelsea were promoted as runners-up, while Sunderland missed out on goal average.

Luton Town and Walsall went down to the Third Division.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Stoke City 42 20 13 9 73 50 1.460 53 Promoted to the First Division
2 Chelsea 42 24 4 14 81 42 1.929 52
3 Sunderland 42 20 12 10 84 55 1.527 52
4 Middlesbrough 42 20 9 13 86 85 1.012 49
5 Leeds United 42 19 10 13 79 53 1.491 48
6 Huddersfield Town 42 17 14 11 63 50 1.260 48
7 Newcastle United 42 18 11 13 79 59 1.339 47
8 Bury 42 18 11 13 51 47 1.085 47
9 Scunthorpe United 42 16 12 14 57 59 0.966 44
10 Cardiff City 42 18 7 17 83 73 1.137 43
11 Southampton 42 17 8 17 72 67 1.075 42
12 Plymouth Argyle 42 15 12 15 76 73 1.041 42
13 Norwich City 42 17 8 17 80 79 1.013 42
14 Rotherham United 42 17 6 19 67 74 0.905 40
15 Swansea Town 42 15 9 18 51 72 0.708 39
16 Portsmouth 42 13 11 18 63 79 0.797 37
17 Preston North End 42 13 11 18 59 74 0.797 37
18 Derby County 42 12 12 18 61 72 0.847 36
19 Grimsby Town 42 11 13 18 55 66 0.833 35
20 Charlton Athletic 42 13 5 24 62 94 0.660 31
21 Walsall 42 11 9 22 53 89 0.596 31 Relegated to the Third Division
22 Luton Town 42 11 7 24 61 84 0.726 29
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.

Third Division

Northampton Town won the Third Division title and with it a place in the Second Division, while Swindon Town finally climbed out of the league's third tier, having been there since its creation 43 years previously.

Halifax Town, Carlisle United, Brighton and Bradford Park Avenue went down to the Fourth Division.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Northampton Town 46 26 10 10 109 60 1.817 62 Promoted to the Second Division
2 Swindon Town 46 22 14 10 87 56 1.554 58
3 Port Vale 46 23 8 15 72 58 1.241 54
4 Coventry City 46 18 17 11 83 69 1.203 53
5 Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 46 18 16 12 63 46 1.370 52
6 Peterborough United 46 20 11 15 93 75 1.240 51
7 Notts County 46 19 13 14 73 74 0.986 51
8 Southend United 46 19 12 15 75 77 0.974 50
9 Wrexham 46 20 9 17 84 83 1.012 49
10 Hull City 46 19 10 17 74 69 1.072 48
11 Crystal Palace 46 17 13 16 68 58 1.172 47
12 Colchester United 46 18 11 17 73 93 0.785 47
13 Queens Park Rangers 46 17 11 18 85 76 1.118 45
14 Bristol City 46 16 13 17 100 92 1.087 45
15 Shrewsbury Town 46 16 12 18 83 81 1.025 44
16 Millwall 46 15 13 18 82 87 0.943 43
17 Watford 46 17 8 21 82 85 0.965 42
18 Barnsley 46 15 11 20 63 74 0.851 41
19 Bristol Rovers 46 15 11 20 70 88 0.795 41
20 Reading 46 16 8 22 74 78 0.949 40
21 Bradford Park Avenue 46 14 12 20 79 97 0.814 40 Relegated to the Fourth Division
22 Brighton & Hove Albion 46 12 12 22 58 84 0.690 36
23 Carlisle United 46 13 9 24 61 89 0.685 35
24 Halifax Town 46 9 12 25 64 106 0.604 30
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.

Fourth Division

Brentford won the Fourth Division title, their first significant postwar success. Oldham Athletic, Crewe Alexandra and Mansfield Town also went up, while league newcomers Oxford United finished 18th. Bradford City, FA Cup winners in 1911 and First Division members for a number of seasons leading up to 1922, had to apply for re-election.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Brentford 46 27 8 11 98 64 1.531 62 Promoted to the Third Division
2 Oldham Athletic 46 24 11 11 95 60 1.583 59
3 Crewe Alexandra 46 24 11 11 86 58 1.483 59
4 Mansfield Town 46 24 9 13 108 69 1.565 57
5 Gillingham 46 22 13 11 71 49 1.449 57
6 Torquay United 46 20 16 10 75 56 1.339 56
7 Rochdale 46 20 11 15 67 59 1.136 51
8 Tranmere Rovers 46 20 10 16 81 67 1.209 50
9 Barrow 46 19 12 15 82 80 1.025 50
10 Workington 46 17 13 16 76 68 1.118 47
11 Aldershot 46 15 17 14 73 69 1.058 47
12 Darlington 46 19 6 21 72 87 0.828 44
13 Southport 46 15 14 17 72 106 0.679 44
14 York City 46 16 11 19 67 62 1.081 43
15 Chesterfield 46 13 16 17 70 64 1.094 42
16 Doncaster Rovers 46 14 14 18 64 77 0.831 42
17 Exeter City 46 16 10 20 57 77 0.740 42
18 Oxford United 46 13 15 18 70 71 0.986 41
19 Stockport County 46 15 11 20 56 70 0.800 41
20 Newport County 46 14 11 21 76 90 0.844 39
21 Chester 46 15 9 22 51 66 0.773 39 Re-elected
22 Lincoln City 46 13 9 24 68 89 0.764 35
23 Bradford City 46 11 10 25 64 93 0.688 32
24 Hartlepools United 46 7 11 28 56 104 0.538 25
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.

Top goalscorers

First Division

Second Division

Third Division

Fourth Division

References

  1. 1 2 3 Ballard, John; Suff, Paul (1999). World Soccer The Dictionary of Football. Boxtree Ltd. p. 468. ISBN 0-7522-2434-4.
  2. 1 2 Ballard, John; Suff, Paul (1999). World Soccer The Dictionary of Football. Boxtree Ltd. p. 79. ISBN 0-7522-2434-4.
  3. ↑ "England's European Championship Matches".
  4. ↑ "Leicester Drops Five Points Back". The Gazette. Montreal. Reuters. 6 May 1963. p. 28. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
  5. ↑ "U.K Soccer Scores, Weekend Standings". The Gazette. Montreal. 6 May 1963. p. 28. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
  6. ↑ "Stoke City Regains Lead". The Gazette. Montreal. The Canadian Press; Reuters. 20 May 1963. p. 17. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  7. ↑ "Chelsea Promoted". The Herald. Glasgow. 22 May 1963. p. 6. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  8. ↑ "Draw at Highbury". The Herald. Glasgow. 25 May 1963. p. 8. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  9. ↑ England v Football League, 24 May 1963, 11v11.com
  10. ↑ "Other Results". The Herald. Glasgow. 25 May 1963. p. 8. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  11. ↑ "KILMARNOCK AND WEST HAM DRAW". The Herald. Glasgow. 31 May 1963. p. 13. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  12. 1 2 "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  13. 1 2 "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.